Although New York City concert venues are closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, Yankee Stadium is planning to hold socially-distant shows this summer as a part of its first drive-in concert series.
Uptown Drive-In, a new festival-like event, will set up in the parking lot of Yankee Stadium. The drive-in movie theater series will feature local New York City artists, as well as carside dinner service from New York street vendors. On-site, concertgoers will also be able to participate in live interactive games, as well as raffles and giveaways.
“Anticipating the reopening process in NYC, we’ve been working on the idea of an Uptown Drive-In Experience since late March,” the drive-in said in a statement on its website. “We have created a social distancing playground to serve as the first step to normalization and made it right here in our beloved Bronx.”
From the safety of their cars, fans can watch artists perform on a lifted stage, with music streaming from a PA system to visitors’ car radios, MASC Hospitality Group’s Marco Shalma told Time Out New York. According to Shalma, MASC – who also is responsible for the Bronx Night Market and the Bronx Beer Festival – is working to curate the experience. The Uptown Drive-In is reportedly working to hold date-night experiences on the weekend, while family-friendly brunch series will take place during the day on Saturday and Sunday.
“We’re working with city and state officials, and some of our sponsors to reduce cost as much as we can to be able to make this very affordable, and for as many New Yorkers as possible,” Shalma said. “The tickets will be only online. Also, with the help of our partners, we will be able to raffle a bunch of tickets.”
New Yorkers can join the waitlist for Uptown Drive-In here. Tickets will be all-inclusive and available strictly online via a first-come, first-serve basis.
This is the latest-announced drive-in concert series. Initially, the drive-in movie theater concert was announced in Germany, followed by Marc Rebillet’s tour in the U.S. this summer. More and more of these concerts will begin popping up in the future as Live Nation President and CEO Michael Rapino announced in an investor earnings call that the industry giant would test crowdless shows and drive-in theater tours this summer to keep concerts afloat.